An active year on Kalshi can produce more than one tax document in the same season: a 1099-INT for interest, a 1099-MISC for credits and rewards, a 1099-B for crypto transfers, a 1099-DA for ZeroHash digital-asset reporting, and the PnL statement that summarizes your event-contract trading, including profits, losses, and fees. This guide explains what each document covers, how the reported numbers relate to your own trade history, and the reconciliation steps worth taking before filing — including why a CFTC-regulated exchange sends legitimate paperwork your accountant can work with.
Depending on your activity in a given tax year, you might receive up to four different 1099 forms from Kalshi. This isn't a mistake or an accounting error. Each form covers a different type of income, and the IRS wants them separated.
As a CFTC-regulated exchange, Kalshi has actual reporting obligations. This is different from offshore platforms where you're basically on your own for tax documentation. The regulation adds friction, but it also means you get legitimate paperwork that your accountant can work with.
The forms you might see are:
Not everyone gets every form. Your event-contract trading itself is not on a 1099-B: Kalshi summarizes it in the PnL statement, which you can download from the Account tab under Tax Info. What you receive depends on your account activity, whether you participated in promotions, and whether you kept uninvested cash in your account.
The 1099-B is not a contract-trading form. Per Kalshi's Help Center, it reports transaction proceeds from broker transactions, in practice crypto transfers into or out of your account. If you never moved funds by crypto, you may not receive a 1099-B at all.
What the 1099-B does not do is list your event-contract trades, their cost basis, or their settlement dates. That activity lives in a different document.
Your PnL statement summarizes your trading activity, including profits, losses, and fees, and is available in the Account tab under Tax Info. Download it and reconcile it against your own trade history before filing. If the two disagree, resolve the discrepancy first: your return should be built from verified numbers, not from assumptions about which document is authoritative.
If you received referral bonuses, promotional credits, or any other non-trading income from Kalshi, you'll get a 1099-MISC. The threshold here is $600. Below that, you might not receive the form, but technically you're still supposed to report the income.
Common items that trigger a 1099-MISC:
This income is taxed as ordinary income, not capital gains. It goes on Schedule 1 of your 1040, not Schedule D. Your CPA will know where to put it, but if you're doing your own taxes, don't mix it with your trading gains.
Kalshi holds your deposited funds in accounts that can generate interest. If you earned more than $10 in interest during the tax year, you'll receive a 1099-INT.
Most active traders don't keep large uninvested balances sitting around (money not in contracts isn't working for you), so this form is typically small or nonexistent. But if you deposited a chunk of capital in January and waited for the right setups, you might have earned enough interest to trigger the form.
Interest income is ordinary income. It gets added to your wages, prediction market bonuses, and everything else that isn't capital gains.
This is where traders most often get confused: the forms themselves say little until you know where each number goes on your actual return.
Prediction market contracts on Kalshi are currently treated as short-term capital gains or losses, regardless of how long you held them. This means they're taxed at your ordinary income rate, not the preferential long-term capital gains rate.
Report these on:
The "short-term" part stings if you're profitable. But losses are also fully deductible against other capital gains, with up to $3,000 per year deductible against ordinary income if you have net losses.
Both 1099-MISC income and 1099-INT income are ordinary income. They go on different lines of your return, but they're taxed the same way. Your tax software will walk you through entering each form.
Some of the same errors come up repeatedly in trader discussions in the Kalshi View Telegram channel:
If your numbers don't match between your Kalshi account history and your 1099 forms, reach out to their support before filing. Amended returns are annoying.
Kalshi typically sends 1099 forms by mid-February, in line with IRS deadlines. You'll receive them electronically through your account dashboard and potentially by mail if you opted for paper delivery. If you don't see your forms by late February, check your spam folder and then contact support. The forms cover all activity from January 1 through December 31 of the previous tax year.
You still need to report your losses even if you ended the year negative. The good news is that capital losses offset capital gains from other investments. If your losses exceed your gains, you can deduct up to $3,000 against ordinary income per year. Remaining losses carry forward to future years. Losing money is never fun, but at least you get some tax benefit.
Currently, Kalshi contracts are treated as short-term capital gains regardless of holding period. This differs from stocks, where positions held over one year qualify for lower long-term capital gains rates. The tax treatment of prediction markets is still evolving, so consult a tax professional for your specific situation. The IRS hasn't issued definitive guidance on all prediction market scenarios.
Contract trading may not produce a 1099 at all: Kalshi's 1099-B covers crypto transfers, and your trading activity is summarized in the PnL statement. Either way, you're still obligated to report the income. Download your PnL statement and transaction history from your Kalshi account and calculate your gains manually. The IRS expects you to report all taxable income whether or not you receive a form. When in doubt, report it. Getting audited over a few hundred dollars is not worth the stress.
Primary sources I checked: IRS Publication 550 (capital asset categories and basis rules), the CFTC KalshiEX designation (Kalshi's DCM status), and Kalshi's tax documentation article (live September 25, 2026: 1099-INT interest, 1099-MISC credits and rewards, 1099-B crypto transfers, 1099-DA ZeroHash reporting, PnL statement).
Not financial advice. This site provides educational information only. Trading involves risk, and you can lose money. Verify current market rules and do your own research.